moosers
Published on 09/15/10 at 18:05
The Waves Ltd. API 560 is a graphic equalizer plug-in that is part of the Waves API Collection of plug-ins. I don't think it's available for purchase on it's own, so you'll need either the aforementioned bundle or the full Waves Complete bundle to acquire this plug-in. Installing the plug-in should be really simple, as I had no issues at all installing any of the Waves API plug-ins and I don't believe that others will have problems as long as your system is sufficient and compatible. The interface of the plug-in is really simple, as it's just a software version of the ten band 500 series API 560 hardware equalizer. Even if you've never used the original hardware 560 before, it's just a simple graphic EQ and should be self explanatory regardless of your level of expertise. The plug-in also has an overall output leveler in addition to the ten bands of sliders. A manual shouldn't be necessary, but I haven't seen it so I can't speak to it's make up.
SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE
I'm currently running the Waves Ltd. API 560 plug-in at home on my Mac Book Pro and with Pro Tools LE 8. The computer has a 2.2 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and 4 GB of RAM, while I'm running Pro Tools LE 8 with a Digi 002R audio interface and I'm monitoring with a set of Adam A7's. This plug-in hasn't been taking up too much of my processing power within this configuration, and it's also worth noting that I've used it on a Pro Tools HD system without problems as well. If you're looking to get any Waves plug-ins, it should be safe to say that you already know you'll need a sufficient system to run them on...
OVERALL OPINION
The Waves Ltd. API 560 is a nice little graphic EQ plug-in and is one that can definitely come in quite useful on a daily basis. It's perfect for doing a quick EQ job if you're looking just to cut or boost right at one of the given frequencies. It doesn't sound as good or clean as a real API 560, but it's pretty close for a plug-in version. If you're interested in some new EQ plug-ins and/or this one specifically, I'd definitely recommend looking into the entire Waves API Collection.
SUITABILITY/PERFORMANCE
I'm currently running the Waves Ltd. API 560 plug-in at home on my Mac Book Pro and with Pro Tools LE 8. The computer has a 2.2 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo processor and 4 GB of RAM, while I'm running Pro Tools LE 8 with a Digi 002R audio interface and I'm monitoring with a set of Adam A7's. This plug-in hasn't been taking up too much of my processing power within this configuration, and it's also worth noting that I've used it on a Pro Tools HD system without problems as well. If you're looking to get any Waves plug-ins, it should be safe to say that you already know you'll need a sufficient system to run them on...
OVERALL OPINION
The Waves Ltd. API 560 is a nice little graphic EQ plug-in and is one that can definitely come in quite useful on a daily basis. It's perfect for doing a quick EQ job if you're looking just to cut or boost right at one of the given frequencies. It doesn't sound as good or clean as a real API 560, but it's pretty close for a plug-in version. If you're interested in some new EQ plug-ins and/or this one specifically, I'd definitely recommend looking into the entire Waves API Collection.